Sixty Miles & US Customs & Border Patrol

Perseids from Anza Borrego: Night lapse.


I had the experience of watching the shower last August after hearing about it on CNN. With Steux and Ernest simultaneously watching from their own roofs, I climbed the ladder to my own and gazed into the sky. Hyped by testimonies of fervent stargazers, I was meddled by the light pollution of living in the city. The wait for the first meteor seemed like forever. Still, I got to enjoy seeing my first of nearly 20 shooting stars. I will admit, out of the biggest curiosity, I made a wish or two.

I was determined to catch the shower again this year. I was sure that it was around August 20 something and had kept my mind on that. It wasn't until a bulletin notice that I was informed the shower was, in fact, this morning. Yesterday, Jennika and I began to plan the night/morning for, what was to become, an enjoyable summer night.

We knew we needed to catch it somewhere dark. North and West would only lead us further into the city. South was obviously Mexico, so we were left with East county. Barona, Viejas, or Jamul? Barona was the first choice just so we could go to the casino, pero Jennika is still a minor. So then Viejas?

I headed to Emphasis around 6:30 to chill and later take Dea's 7:30 class. After class, we watched Mean Girls and Eurotrip until we were to head out to the destination.

Hispanic wheelchair girl: "I don't hate you cuz you're fat, you're fat cuz I hate you!"

We finally decided on Jamul since we knew the area and it was closer. Nearly five cars packed of twenty-something of us left for Jamul around 1:45. Reminiscence of horror flicks like Jeepers Creepers and Texas Chain Saw Massacre were mocked by the other cars; swerving, high beaming, and pitch black driving.

After nearly being cannibalized by a senior citizen at the Jamul campgrounds, we left further into Campo. We then realized the sky would not get any better (helped by Jennika's iPhone Weather Forecast), so we fled back to the 7-11 for refuge. On the way back, we were stopped at a US Customs & Border Patrol check point to check if we were smuggling immigrants. As much as we wanted to laugh, we knew it was serious business. The authorities let us pass by rather quickly and we arrived at 7-11 to talk about the déjà vu. In our strength in numbers attempt to watch the annual Perseid's Meteor Shower, we fell short of the many expectations by Mother Nature's damn clouds.

The morning continued with the random photo shoot that spontaneously happens where you're at Emphasis. Group pictures, solos, and candids were flashed all until 4:00. After a series of caterpillar racing, superstitious lifting, and flexibility contests, the morning was concluded with Maryann suggesting,

"We should watch the sunrise at Sunset Cliffs."
"That's impossible. But I'm sure they have a place called Sunrise Cliffs on the east coast..."